Category: Ryan McMaken

Decentralization Is The Solution To The Government Shutdown Problem By Ryan McMaken The partial shutdown with the federal government has helped, perhaps more than any other recent political event, to illustrate some of the biggest problems that come with centralizing an ever-larger number of government activities within a single, centralized institution. Were the US government more decentralized, we’d not now be facing a nationwide systemic failure that has continues to cripple the private sector in many ways. Held Hostage by a Shuttered Regulatory State The federalization of resources and regulatory…

Imagine if the Media Had as Much Sympathy for Small Business Owners as it Does for Federal Employees By Ryan McMaken During this partial government shutdown, it’s become nearly impossible to avoid news articles, and segments on television and radio outlining the many ways that federal employees are apparently suffering financially as a result of the partial government shutdown. The stories are very diverse in topic. Some take a “human interest story” angle, simply looking at how the daily lives of some of these employees have been affected. Others look…

The Government Shutdown Exposes Another Reason to Abolish the TSA By Ryan McMaken The Transportation Security Administration, a federal agency, is facing a no-show problem with employees, as paychecks are put on hold during the partial government shutdown. This is reportedly leading to longer lines and security problems at airports nationwide. According to CNN, Hundreds of Transportation Security Administration officers, who are required to work without paychecks through the partial government shutdown, have called out from work this week from at least four major airports… TSA spokespeople, meanwhile, insist everything…

The Creepy Line: A New Documentary on the Immense Power of Tech Giants By Ryan McMaken The Creepy Line, a new documentary by director M.A. Taylor, is now streaming at Amazon Prime. It takes a disturbing look at how Google and Facebook influence their users’ view of the world, and how the companies have pioneered new ways of doing business. It’s a business model in which personal data harvested from users is exploited so as to offer targeted advertising to third parties. The Creepy Line takes its title from a…

Europe’s War on Free Speech Continues By Ryan McMaken A European court has ruled that people can be fined and prosecuted in criminal court for saying things about religious figures. Specifically, saying things about the Muslim prophet Mohammad is verboten, and state punishment is appropriate: The European Court of Human Rights has ruled a woman convicted by an Austrian court of calling the Prophet Mohammed a paedophile did not have her freedom of speech rights infringed. The woman, named only as Mrs. S, 47, from Vienna, was said to have…